Let’s start today with one of my very favorite passages from Isaiah, chapter 61, verses 1-3, and then we’ll break it down.
“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the suffering and afflicted. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted, to announce liberty to captives, and to open the eyes of the blind. 2) He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of God’s favor to them has come, and the day of his wrath to their enemies. 3) To all who mourn in Israel he will give: beauty for ashes; joy instead of mourning; praise instead of heaviness. For God has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for his own glory.”
If you don’t have a life verse, I highly suggest you get one, and meditate on it daily. Take this one, make it your mantra. Declare it over your life and see how your life changes. Your confidence will increase, you will be stretched, you will grow in virtue, and your life will conform to the will of God.
Verse 1- “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me” - I love how before we do ANYthing, we first must have the Spirit of the Lord. We need to unashamedly welcome the help of the Holy Spirit, and let Him be fully operational in our life. If you want to see maximum results, you need to partner with the Holy Spirit to accomplish the purpose for which He has given you.
“because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the suffering and afflicted.”- God Himself has set you apart, and dedicated your life to His service. He created you with a purpose, and one component of your purpose is to live your life as a witness so that others can see what a difference He has made in your life. By sharing the good news, the gospel, we give hope to others who are suffering. We offer a way out, and His name is Jesus.
“He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted, to announce liberty to captives, and to open the eyes of the blind”- Sometimes the best thing we can offer the brokenhearted, is our time. They simple want to know that someone cares. We don’t always have to know the right thing to say, sometimes, a shoulder to cry on speaks more loudly than flowery words. As for announcing liberty to captives, this is my personal favorite. For so many, when we picture the word ‘captive’, we automatically think of jail, prison, people behind physical bars. What if I told you that the invisible bars of bondage enslaved more people than metal bars? People are damaged, and in desperate need of being restored. They carry around past hurts like a ball and chain. Well, I’m here to break those chains, and tell them they no longer have to live a life of bondage! Jesus came to set them free! By doing this, breaking the yoke that has for so long subjected them to a life of slavery, we open their eyes to a whole new way of life. Jesus Himself said in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me and I will give you rest- for all of you who have worked so hard beneath a heavy yoke. Wear my yoke- for it fits perfectly, and let me teach you; for I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest for your souls, for I only give light burdens.”
Verse 2- “He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of God’s favor to them has come, and the day of his wrath to their enemies.” - Many translations say, the year of jubilee or it’s the time of a favorable year. That’s exactly what it sounds like, a party, a celebration of the Grace that God has shown us by delivering us from our lives of destruction. It’s time that we as believers, can set aside to thank Him for graciously saving us from our enemies and destroying the weapons that were formed against us. We get to take a praise break to acknowledge His goodness and favor on our lives.
Verse 3- “To all who mourn in Israel he will give: beauty for ashes; joy instead of mourning; praise instead of heaviness.”- In those times, people who were in mourning, actually had ashes smeared across their foreheads, to indicate to everyone else that they were experiencing a time of sadness. Now, we don’t actually put ashes on our heads, so it’s not always as obvious, but I believe that if we are in tune with the Spirit of God, He will point out to us people who are hurting and need help. It’s a part of our purpose to exchange people’s brokenness for the beauty of our Savior. We are to take away the the sadness and replace it with a crown. To me, this symbolizes that we are taking off the old life, the things that weighed us down and marked us as damaged goods. Here’s the good part, we then get to replace that filthy baggage with a life that is custom made by the Creator! The old things gone and forgotten, behold, He is doing a new thing! From now on the down trodden will no longer be identified by their hurts, failures, and defeats, they are now crowned with acceptance from the Father, they will now be known as Heirs to the Kingdom!
“For God has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for his own glory.”-
Oh, to be called an Oak, what a gift! The oak tree is a symbol of righteousness, life giving, and able to withstand peril and endure for a lifetime. What a tribute to the glory of God! The idea here is that those who were once oppressed, and burdened by sin, are now strong and vigorous, deeply rooted in the Father, unwavering.
This passage is my calling, I am convinced that God has given me His Spirit, and anointed me to share His story of healing and redemption to those who have lost all hope. I want to tear the blinders off their eyes, by replacing the lies of the enemy, with the truth of God. I want to shout to them that they no longer have to live a life bound by fear, shame and rejection. I want to let them know that God has a better plan for them, a plan for their future. I want to firmly plant them, so that no matter what comes their way, nothing will sway them, they will be rooted and grounded in the love of a good, good Father.
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